Our Blackberry Passport arrived last week and of course as always we need protection and Noreve once again came to the rescue and provided us with a quite beautiful case for our passport the case is quite nice and bespoke and has a fantastic leather exterior to is and the lovely smell of leather is quite nice believe it or not.
The case is quite nice to hold and is in the fold factor design,for a large phone this may not suit some due to it folding down but if you are use to big phones and this style of case it will work fine its also not that bulky and does not add anything major to an already big squared device,it looks very slick and trendy and professional if i dare say.
Elegant case conceived in top quality handcrafted leather
– Hand-crafted manufacturing quality
– Practical thanks to its magnetic closure
– Slim and padded design
– Protects the device in an optimal manner
– All sides protective case
– Access to basic functions (multiple openings on the leather)
– Two business or credit card slots
– Headphones and headset jack access
– Charging and synchronization cable access
– Easy access to stylus
– Beautiful interior lining embossed with the Noreve logo
– Leather stand on the back for horizontal use
You can buy either of these cases from noreve over at this link here they range from €49.50 which may seem expensive to some,but these are quality bespoke cases and you can customize to our preference.
LG have announced some new mid range devices. The four devices will be available in both LTE and 3G versions, consistent with LG’s strategy to expand its appeal in the mass-tier segment with different products for different networks. The LTE and 3G versions of each model share nearly identical design cues with metallic back covers distinguishing the LTE models while the 3G devices feature patterned plastic back covers.LG have really come along quite well over the last two years so these devices will be most welcome for LG fans.
From the LG News Room
SEOUL, Feb. 23, 2015 — At this year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC), LG Electronics (LG) will unveil a new line of exceptional smartphones at exceptional prices with the introduction of mid-range handsets with design elements and features usually reserved for premium models.
LG’s new lineup of four mid-range smartphones — Magna, Spirit, Leon and Joy — builds on LG’s design language to bring optimized performance and effortless user experience to a broader range of consumers. By combining the most essential hardware with LG’s premium design elements and user experience, LG has created the perfect balance of style and usability. The LG Magna and LG Spirit are designed to fit more comfortably in palm of one’s hand with its gently curved design while their displays are distinguished by a subtle 3000mm radius curve for a sleeker, more attractive profile.
The LG Magna, which means “ultimate” in Latin, features a 5-inch in-cell touch display, normally offered only in premium smartphones, and a Quad-Core chipset. With an 8-megapixel main camera and 5-megapixel front shooter, the LG Magna was designed with high quality selfies in mind. A class leading 2,540mAh removable battery keeps the Magna running all day even with heavy use.
The LG Spirit, which embodies the spirit of LG’s innovations, features a 4.7-inch in-cell touch display and an 8-megapixel camera. In-cell touch technology makes the phones look slimmer while maximizing their display areas and minimizing the bezels. By bringing images closer to the screen, in-cell touch displays offer improved sensitivity with faster touch recognition, better outdoor visibility and crisper images.
The LG Leon, “lion” in Latin, offers a 4.5-inch display in a compact, premium-looking body. The smallest of the group, LG Joy, has a 4-inch display and delivers pure enjoyment in a smartphone that fits in any pocket.
With the new mid-range lineup, LG is carrying over popular UX features originally designed for its premium smartphones. Gesture Shot makes it easy to take great selfies with a simple hand gesture that starts a three-second countdown. LG has extended the distance from which the camera can recognize gestures to1.5 meters to accommodate popular selfie sticks. Glance View, which debuted on the G Flex2, lets users quickly access key information such as time, recent messages or missed calls with a simple downward swipe of the screen, even while the display is off.
“LG’s new mid-range collection continues our legacy of offering amazing smartphones at reasonable prices,” said Juno Cho, president and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company. “For millions of consumers around the world, the deciding factor on which smartphone to buy isn’t how fast or how big it is but how balanced it is. With our new mid-range smartphones, more and more customers will be looking to LG for their next handsets.”
LG’s new mid-range collection will begin its global rollout this week in select markets. Visitors to MWC 2015 will be able to experience all of LG’s newest products first-hand at LG’s booth in Hall 3 of Fira Gran Via.
YouTube kids has now hit the play store,sadly only for the US,we had an APK sent over to try it out but im sure there will be some available on the net shortly.For now its only on Android but will be made more available over the coming weeks.
Over on the YouTube blog here is the report on what the app will feature.
Family-focused content
For years, families have come to YouTube, watching countless hours of videos on all kinds of topics. Now, parents can rest a little easier knowing that videos in the YouTube Kids app are narrowed down to content appropriate for kids. You can browse channels and playlists in four categories: Shows, Music, Learning and Explore. Or search for videos of particular interest to your family, like how to build a model volcano, math tutorials, the amazing (and endless) world of trains—and everything in between.
Parental controls We realize every family is different, so we’ve built options into the app that help you control the experience for your kids:
Timer: Let the app be the bad guy with a built-in timer that lets you limit kids’ screen time. The app alerts your child when the session is over, so you don’t have to. (You’re welcome. 😉 )
Sound settings: Sometimes you need a little peace and quiet! You have an option to turn off background music and sound effects, so your kids can keep watching while you catch a breather.
Search settings: If you’d rather limit your children to just the pre-selected videos available on the home screen, you can turn off search.
Product feedback: Our goal is to improve YouTube Kids all the time, so we’ve included a space for you to give us your feedback.
On downloading the app we are introduced with a nice soundtrack and startup,we then have the options to set the parental controls which is straight forward enough to work with,then we can move into the app and select from shows,music,learning and explore there is also a search function which works quite well,so far it looks quite good and its keeping my daughter entertained so far.The layout is quite simple and easy to follow,to access the parental settings you need to enter the password and they will then appear,
Source if you want to download the APK for it you can here at your own will..
Kids love to play games and there is never enough,my daughter checks the store every day,with my observation of course and she is always adding or deleting games on her Lumia 625,its very hard to keep her happy at times and i find most of the time kids go by the thumbnail photo and point to it and request it,however its always worth noting you should always read up some more on the game prior to downloading.
Mash&Co is a multimedia episodic app for pre-school kids and families ,parents can monitor their kids performance with this app and watch their skills grow too.
The app has animated digital novels,cartoon series and mini games which is quite cool all this in one application.There is a multi touch UI which is colourful and fun so all can get involved and its also safe along with a stimulating environment.
Features
Interactive animated tales – Animated series of Mash and Periwinkle who are the characters, Mini Games ,Various chapters of animated tales which children can interact and progress which progresses stimulation,creativity and attention. Also non verbal language ensures all kids around the world can play and get involved. The first three contents are free in this version so there will be add ons to buy,you can put this game in the Kids Corner of your Lumia device too..
The Game is free to download and is 16MB you can download it right HERE
YouTube is a very popular platform to watch videos,music and all sorts and i spend some time on it myself but all is not always as it seems there in the real world just like any other platform.However there is a new You Tube for kids app now where it will be a safe environment for kids and parents can monitor their activity and set time limits for them too which is a good idea.
The App will be only on Android on release, It will feature videos, channels and playlists targeted specifically at youngsters, including “Thomas the Tank Engine,” “National Geographic Kids” and “Reading Rainbow,” while cutting out less kid-friendly or distracting elements on YouTube, including user comments and cruder videos..
In every household its safe to say there is at least one charger for the majority its much more now with an average household having more than one mobile device in the house. We tend to leave them in overnight or never plug them out from the socket.
Its always best to use original products,ie official OEMs and not cheap ones we can buy elsewhere on the internet to save money,they might be fine in general but its worth noting that sticking with original is the best. Most shops (bricks and mortar,retail) do offer generic which are fine. Always check the voltage and amperage.Most if not all modern phones,tablets today will stop charging when the device is charged once you use the correct charger.
In an article not to long ago from the daily mail it shows that fires are on the increase in the UK too,we don’t really see much here but its something to think about after todays news where the Dublin Fire Brigade had to put out a fire in a Dublin home to overheating.
So as Dublin Fire Brigade says “BEWARE” don’t become too complacent folks.. Well done to the folks at Dublin Fire Brigade.
The Nokia 215 is the latest series 30 handset from Microsoft offering an internet ready handset thats in a candybar form which is available in single and dual sim.
The Nokia 215 and Nokia 215 Dual-SIMDual-SIM are targeted towards the first time mobile phone users, with good smooth looks and great build quality, which will surely remind us of Nokia. These will be launched in three vibrant colours – Green, Black and White.
Being a true Internet- ready device, Nokia 215 & Nokia 215 Dual-SIM comes pre-installed with Facebook and Messenger with instant notifications keeping you connected with friends and family while you’ll be able to check your friends’ news feeds and update your status. These devices also have Opera Mini Browser and Bing Search installed letting you browse website and search content on the web.
However the price is higher than the estimated launch price and as usual early adopters will be fleeced by online sellers which is nothing new to be honest but its always best to shop around.
Amazon UK have the 215 priced at £32.79 which converts to roughly €44.36 plus shipping costs this is nearly double the price quoted at announcement. You can buy it HERE from Amazon.
Irish Online seller phonesonline.ie also have the 215 listed on their website priced higher again,priced at €59.99 If interested you can purchase it HERE
Amazon france also have it listed but its not worth the mention as Amazon.de have it much cheaper listed at a much more realistic price as seen below,you can pick it up HERE if you are interested and they ship to Ireland and the UK,if you encounter shipping issues you can also use Parcel Motel to get hold of it.
Lets make no mistake the iPhone 6 is popular so is the 6 plus,but its not for me,moving on customising phones is still a big business and now the iPhone 6 has got a coat in gold,this seems to becoming popular once again with other brands having done so already making them a limited edition hoping it will fetch more sales it will work for some and not for others,paying the extra bucks for a coat of gold is really a niche market.
Goldgenie has made a bespoke outfit for the iPhone 6 and of course it will probably sell well for those that can afford,Apple fans are quite loyal and for those who have the cash to splash will be the ones who will buy this.
Looks nice,some may think different and Gold is a thing for some but can the price be justified for covering your phone in it ?
The Gold attribute does suit some devices quite well and some devices it makes them look the opposite,as mentioned though its not a mass market appeal nor its it meant to be,these bespoke devices are for those who like the finer things in life and can splash out.
The cost is… Well €3,565 for the 64GB version,and if you fancy the 128GB model its €3,834 you can also decide on white and black on the front facia.
You also get a nice highly finished box too and free shipping worldwide,there is a limited number of these been made which is 99 so if you have the cash away you go. Head over to GoldGenie.Apparently it will give you good fortune too..
So a phone has arrived which is not something i usually dabble with,in the past i have done so but over the last 2/3 years no,but of late Blackberry has had some nice devices and one that grabbed my attention along with many others its the new passport.
On first seeing it on the web i was like,what in the name of god but over time it settled on me and i kind of said “this is certainly interesting” its different,i like different,its almost square,it began to get my interest even more and having seen some pals on twitter talk about it and eventually delving in and getting one i said “hey” enough i want one of these,i did scoff it at the start but the kind folk over at Blackberry sent one over after i reached out and i thank them so much for it. Now that its in my hands my opinion has changed ALOT. Briefly i did see one out at a meeting at RTE and even then i was interested in it,this is what inspired me more to go and get..
The presentation.
What else is inside.
Opened box.
Bottom of device.
The camera area.
Back of device.
Top of device.
Left side view.
Top view.
Right side view.
2 / 10
So its a slab to say the least,its how i like my phones,i like big phones,owning the likes of the Nexus 6 ,Note 4 and Edge and a Lumia 1320 this is in line with my comfort zone,anything smaller and its a no go area,having said that i do have plenty of smaller phones but not in this form factor,this is the qwerty phone i’ve been waiting for in one sense,the keyboard placement is taking a bit to get use to but im getting there.
The Passport comes well equipped inside as well as outside,we have 3GB RAM which is impressive,we have 32GB on board storage and can be expanded up to 128GB via micro sd,there is a nice 13MP snapper on the back with OIS and flash and the front facing camera is just 2MP,there is full HD1080p recording at 70 fps. A 3,450mAh battery is also on board which is non removeable this should see you the day no problem,we also have stereo speakers which sound quite good and the 3 row touch enabled qwerty keyboard which is quite nice and intuitive.
Build quality is excellent it feels solid in hand and robust with a nice soft back where the BlackBerry logo is embedded ,the screen is big and gives a sharp display at 4.5you will have ample amount of viewing pleasure. First thoughts so far is quite good,originally i scoffed the phone but its grown on me and i have to say so far im impressed with initial use and setting it up i hope it will continue to keep me impressed over the coming days and will have my final thoughts jotted down in our final review.
